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Friday, July 20, 2012

New York Cape

For someone who bragged about having sewn so much over the holidays, I'm certainly not showing y'all much on this here blog. Truth is, I'm just not feelin' the blog love these days and with school now back, well... it's just hard to push through some times.

Anywho, here is my new favourite sewing project, my Tessuti New York Cape.

When this pattern was first released, I didn't see the look. It wasn't feeling the style. But something has changed this past year and now I'm definitely feeling the love for this look. Maybe Tessuti were a little ahead of their time....

I made my cape with a wool/polymide fabric from The Fabric Store. I originally went there to find the same fabric Leith used for her NY Cape, but thought this black and plum combination would fit my wardrobe a little better.

The fabric is more of a tweed - you know a woven fabric - than a Melton wool or flannel, so I am a little concerned about it stretching out a little. For this reason, I lined my cape hoping that this would help with any stretching, but I guess time will tell if it will help.

This pattern came together super quickly. The wool binding cost almost as much as the fabric, so I was quite concerned about stuffing it up, especially as Rachel had a few troubles with hers. Thankfully, despite these concerns, I found it quite easy to use and only had to unpick and fix a small section.

I did make a few minor changes to the pattern, but nothing major . First I folded a long tuck in the pattern from shoulder to hem, just after the shoulder darts. I don't have large shoulders, so didn't want the cape to swamp my frame. I took about an inch off each side, front and back. I also shortened the cape. I think my about 3-4 inches.

The buttons were from Lincraft and they took ages to pick. You know there just never seems to be the right buttons available for any particular project when you need them.

I really adore this cape. It works pefectly with skinnies and with a cardigan underneath provides pretty much the right anount of warmth I need, exept these last two days - brrr!

In school news, I've just signed up for another 5 week full time teaching block. I'm still loving this new teaching gig, but the full time bit is hard. Hopefully I'll still be able to steal moments at the machine over the weekends, as I'm sure you understand that my week day sewing will be limited. TGIF!

About Me

I'm an obsessive compulsive sewer. I don't just make one thing, I make everything!!
I blog for many reasons, but mainly to show off some of the things I make. You see my husband pretends he cares, but I know he doesn't.